"Nothing turned out as I expected making the ending of the book hit home hard, leaving me with an ending I'm going to remember for a long time. I'm sure this one will sell-out fast, so if you'd like a copy, I'd suggest getting your order in now to avoid disappointment." Steve Myall, Western Fiction Review

"I rarely get emotional when reading...but this book took a turn that was totally unexpected and I have to admit that it left a tear in my eyes."

Stan Rose, Richmond, Kentucky

"Although this is one of only a few westerns I have read, I can honestly say I enjoyed it. I actually fell in love with the character, Ezekiel Zimmerman." Patricia Newton, Lousiville

​The Black Mountain Dutchman is as well written as any L'Amour or Zane Grey book...In fact it's harder to put down than ANY story I've read lately. Ritchie is a word smith with a flare for suspense and intrigue. Rev. Jerry Sawyers, Peterstown, W. Va.

I read many types of novels but my Dad got me started with Louis L'Amour westerns when I was still in my teens. I consider myself a bit of a connoisseur of western fiction. Steve Richie is among the best of the best. Moved to tears

SPECIAL THANKS to those who have written reviews of my work. Please visit the Amazon Bookstore and leave your thoughts on any/all of my published works. Thank you.

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A truly unique and well written book, love the instant justice delivered to villains, story line, dialog, and characters presentation are outstanding. by D. Register on October 9, 2017

SOUTH OF TABLE MOUNTAIN

Amazon/Kindle 2017

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I have never read a finer pioneer western book in a very long time. Book one and book two have got to be a must read series. If you don,t it is your bad luck. I may even read them again. By Harold Cornelison on October 23, 2017

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Very good book, well written and thought out. It was a good story of how a man can change his life.

By Kindle Customer on October 24, 2017

Good story in two volumes. I recommend it to anyone that likes westerns and decent people. Plenty of adventure and sudden violence. A romantic view of Native Americans.

By C. Compton, November 7, 2017

This Book has a little bit of every thing. Romance. Traveling Indians. History. Revenge. Bad guys. Good guys. Thanks. A. Lot Kindle Customer on November 6, 2017

Love the stories by this author. Good, clean fun with lots of action. His stories include lots of local western flavor and information, and just when you think you know where the story is headed, it takes a completely unexpected turn. Keeps you reading long past your bedtime!

By NitaB, November 8, 2017

Amazing....

The detail, clarity and feel of reality in this book took me back a decade or so to listening to my late husband (most likely the last mountain man) describe his days in the wilderness northwest of Denver. I am about to begin reading book two. Thank you, Steve Ritchie..

by Kookiemomster48, December 2, 2017

BALL CREEK ZACH

Book One:

West of Fort Laramie

Steve Myall, Western Fiction Review, Feb. 12, 2018

Zach Fugate came home from the war to the mountains of Kentucky, only to be greeted with hostility, because he had fought for the North. So, to avoid drawing his family into a shooting feud, he loaded a canoe with trade-goods and his few belongings and headed west for the Black Hills of the Dakotas.

He left Ball Creek to avoid difficulties, but no matter where his travels take him or how hard he tries to avoid it, trouble seems to always be waiting for Ball Creek Zach. Nevertheless, romance blooms and new friendships are made as gunsmoke hangs in the air and blood covers the ground from St. Joseph to Fort Laramie and back.

A book of adventure and discovery. A tale that tells of Ball Creek Zach finding a place to set up a new home that also contains riches of more than one kind. Steve Ritchie’s descriptions of this hidden valley paint vivid imagery that place the reader right there, experiencing the wonders and grandeur of nature as if you were standing right beside Fugate.

Ritchie also has the ability to create believable characters and many of these will become new friends for Zach, one he hopes to settle down with.

Along the way Zach comes across those who want what he has, those who just like to push others around, and these are dealt with expertly and swiftly. Ritchie’s action sequences being well told and filled with tension.

I’ve purposely been a bit vague in revealing too much about the story as I don’t want to give anything away to those intending to read this book.

The author also plants the seeds for storylines that could be developed in the sequel, plots of not just hope and happiness but also of confrontation that could threaten Zach’s new life in the worst way possible. Hopefully I will get around to finding out soon as the sequel to this story Return to the Sweetwater, was also published in 2017.

Read this book...it's that good.

By HARALD G. HALL on December 11, 2017

CROW

Amazon/Kindle, 2018

A great story. The author wrote an interesting book about the Native American people and historical data from that era. I cried reading about The Trail of Tears. Though I knew of it and had read of it many times previously. The way that the author wrote of it, almost made you feel as though you were there, going through that traumatic, people killing, painful, horrific time in the history of the Cherokee and in American history. It was a story worth reading. Crow, was a very interesting, good and inspiring man of Cherokee heritage.

by Rose James, March 13, 2018

Having lived in and around De Kalb, Texarkana, El Dorado and Tulsa, and having traveled through Muskogee to Arkadelphia and hunted through the East Texas - Southeast Oklahoma pine woods this story comes alive to me in a special way. The Arkansas-Texas-Oklahoma-Kansas frontier is as described herein. It was just as wild and woolly as San Antonio, El Paso, and Arizona border country.